Modules¶
Modules are groups of related commands with specific values for a certain use case or quality level.
How to use¶
Modules are used in presets to set quality levels and can also be used in a tf/cfg/user/modules.cfg
file to customize your config easily without searching for individual console variable values. Just put your desired module level in user/modules.cfg
. For example, textures=high
.
You can download the modules.cfg template file and drag it into your tf/cfg/user
folder to get started.
In game selection¶
You can select modules in game using the console. Just enter the module you’d like to select with a =
before it. This selection will persist even after a restart!
For example, you could enter =textures=high
to set your textures to high, and to have it set to high in future launches as well.
How does it work? It logs things to a file called tf/cfg/modules.log
, and then executes that modules.log
as a config file.
Advanced¶
Modules are backed with aliases, so you can easily use them in advanced customization and scripting.
If you want to disable running a module entirely, you can put (for example) alias textures ""
in user/modules.cfg
.
Since modules aliases act like normal commands, they can also be used in console to easily change game settings. So you could enter textures_high
into console to temporarily set your texture quality to high for that game session. You can reset your modules back to what they were on startup before you ran the module commands by entering run_modules
into console.
Custom modules¶
You can also create your own modules. Here are user versions of internal mastercomfig definitions:
comfig/comfig.cfg
(define module levels):user/define_modules.cfg
comfig/modules_run.cfg
(apply modules):user/modules_run.cfg
comfig/select_modules.cfg
(define in-game selection commands):user/select_modules.cfg
Network modules¶
Packet rate¶
Controls how fast you send and receive from the server.
packet_rate=congestion
: A halved packet rate for congested networks, usually bad WiFipacket_rate=conservative
: A lower packet rate for slower or less reliable networks, usually WiFi or slow Ethernet (PoE, low bandwidth, etc.)packet_rate=balanced
: A 60 packet rate, for getting rid of extra packets usually not displayed on 60Hz monitors.packet_rate=standard
: The standard 66 packet rate which is the maximum for all servers.
Snapshots¶
Controls how reliable to consider the snapshots you receive from the server to apply client side smoothing between snapshot receives.
snapshots=unreliable
: Heavily protects against packet loss by using every 3rd snapshotsnapshots=safe
: Safest option with minimal snapshot delay by using every other snapshotsnapshots=balanced
: Even less snapshot delay with unreliable snapshot fallback to prevent infrequent packet loss issuessnapshots=lan
: Very reliant on snapshots by using every snapshot. Only use on LAN.
Packet size¶
Controls how big packets are and how they are split up/compressed
packet_size=conservative
: Uses a smaller, safe packet size that should be able to be processed by most routers, even lower end ones.packet_size=lowend
: Uses big single packets while avoiding compression unless needed to avoid splitting up packets. This minimizes computations done on packets before sending.packet_size=minimal
: This minimizes data usage by aggressively compressing packets and avoiding splitting packets (which have more data size overhead than a single packet).packet_size=balanced
: Uses a reasonably large packet size limit that should work with most routers except the lowest end ones. Compresses minimally.
Bandwidth¶
Controls the max speed of packet sending to restrict it to your internet speed to prevent packet overflow. Values in bits (Kilobits or Megabits).
Note: This does not increase data usage, just restricts how quickly data can be sent.
bandwidth=restricted
: Highly restricted game traffic for very bad Internet (192Kbps).bandwidth=384Kbps
: 384Kbps game traffic bandwidth.bandwidth=512Kbps
: 512Kbps game traffic bandwidth.bandwidth=768Kbps
: 768Kbps game traffic bandwidth.bandwidth=1.0Mbps
: 1.0Mbps game traffic bandwidth.bandwidth=1.5Mbps
: 1.5Mbps game traffic bandwidth.bandwidth=2.0Mbps
: 2.0Mbps game traffic bandwidth.bandwidth=2.5Mbps
: 2.5Mbps game traffic bandwidth.bandwidth=3.0Mbps
: 3.0Mbps game traffic bandwidth.bandwidth=4.0Mbps
: 4.0Mbps game traffic bandwidth.bandwidth=unrestricted
: A high rate that should be good for all game traffic (6.0Mbps).bandwidth=max
: The absolute maximum rate allowed by the game (10.0Mbps).
Downloads¶
download=all
: Download all custom files from serversdownload=nosounds
: Download everything but sounds from serversdownload=mapsonly
: Download only maps from serversdownload=none
: Download no custom files from servers
Rendering modules¶
Level of detail¶
Controls how detailed objects are and how decorations fade in.
lod=low
: Low model detail. Decorations are never drawn.lod=medium
: Low model detail. Decorations pop in quicklylod=medium_high
: Medium model detail. Decorations fade in gradually.lod=high
: High model detail. Decorations fade out only when far away.lod=ultra
: Forces high model detail regardless of distance. Decorations fade out only when far away.
Lighting¶
Controls lighting fidelity: dynamic lights, how detailed lighting is, phong, rimlights, light averaging, lightwarps, and ambient boost.
lighting=very_low
: No dynamic lights. Very inaccurate, blocky lighting. No light brightness smoothing, lightwarps, phong, rimlights or lighting brightness boostlighting=low
: No dynamic lights. Blocky lighting. No light brightness smoothing, lightwarps, phong, rimlights or lighting brightness boost.lighting=medium
: No dynamic lights. No light brightness smoothing, lightwarps, phong, rimlights or lighting brightness boost.lighting=medium_high
: No dynamic lights. Detailed lighting. No lightwarps.lighting=high
: Some dynamic lights. Detailed lighting. No lightwarps.lighting=very_high
: Some dynamic lights. Detailed lighting.lighting=ultra
: A lot of dynamic lights. Extremely detailed lighting. Extra lighting brightness boost.
Shadows¶
Controls shadow quality. Shadow limits affect rendered shadows. Shadows above the limit will be blobby.
shadows=off
: No shadows.shadows=very_low
: Blobby shadows.shadows=low
: Up to 4 low quality shadows, and low robot shadow distance.shadows=medium
: Up to 10 high quality shadows, and medium robot shadow distance.shadows=high
: Up to 32 high quality shadows, and high robot shadow distance.shadows=ultra
: Up to 128 high quality shadows, and high robot shadow distance.
Effects¶
Controls weapon and other miscellaneous effects
effects=low
: disables shell casing ejection, disables muzzle flashes, disables first person tracers, disables water splasheseffects=medium
: disables shell casing ejection, disables muzzle flashes, shows first person tracers, enables water splasheseffects=high
: enables shell casing ejection, enables muzzle flashes, shows first person bullet tracers and makes bullet tracers thicker, enables water splasheseffects=ultra
: enables shell casing ejection, enables muzzle flashes, shows first person bullet tracers and makes bullet tracers thicker, enables water splashes
Note: the way TF2 uses these settings is inconsistent and may not apply in all cases.
Water¶
Controls water reflections
water=very_low
: Makes water blackwater=low
: Makes water solidwater=medium
: Uses standard water with no reflections. Fades out to low quality solid/black water at reasonable ranges.water=medium_high
: Uses standard water with basic reflections. Fades out to low quality solid/black water at reasonable ranges.water=high
: Uses standard water with all reflections. Fades out to low quality solid/black water at reasonable ranges.water=very_high
: Uses high quality water with all reflections. Fades out to low quality solid/black water at reasonable ranges.water=ultra
: Uses high quality water with all reflections. Never fades out to low quality water.
Particles¶
Controls particle effects
particles=very_low
: Collapses particles (including bullet tracers) together, makes flames invisible on every other flame stream, disables weather particles, reduces particle density, disables bullet impact flecksparticles=low
: Disables weather particles, reduces particle density, disables bullet impact flecksparticles=medium
: Disables weather particles, reduces particle density, enables bullet impact flecksparticles=high
: Enables weather particles, uses full particle density, enables bullet impact flecksparticles=ultra
: Enables weather particles, uses full particle density, enables the new bullet impact effects system, enables bullet impact flecks
General Post Processing¶
Controls standard post processing effects
post_processing=off
: No post processingpost_processing=low
: Enables basic color correctionpost_processing=medium
: Enables LDR bloompost_processing=high
: Enables standard HDR and bloompost_processing=ultra
: Enables precise HDR and bloom
Pyrovision¶
Controls pyrovision visual effects
pyrovision=low
: Disables pyrovision vignette and skybox SSAO depth of fieldpyrovision=medium
: Enables static pyrovision vignettepyrovision=high
: Enables skybox SSAO depth of field, dynamic pyrovision vignette
Motion blur¶
Controls blurring effect from rotation and movement
motion_blur=off
: Turns off motion blurmotion_blur=low
: Turns on motion blur but reduces it significantlymotion_blur=high
: Motion blur fully enabled
Antialiasing¶
Controls additional antialiasing passes (software AA)
aa=off
: Turns off additional antialiasingaa=on
: Enhanced fence and grass antialiasing
MSAA Antialiasing¶
Controls the main hardware based MSAA antialiasing (and CSAA, if you have an Nvidia card that supports it).
aa_msaa=off
: Turns off MSAA and CSAAaa_msaa=2x
: MSAA 2xaa_msaa=4x
: MSAA 4xaa_msaa=8x
: MSAA 8xaa_msaa=16xq_csaa
: MSAA 8x + CSAA 2x
Texture filtering¶
Controls texture smoothing/filtering
texture_filter=bilinear
: Bilinear filteringtexture_filter=trilinear
: Trilinear filteringtexture_filter=aniso2x
: Anisotropic filtering 2xtexture_filter=aniso4x
: Anisotropic filtering 4xtexture_filter=aniso8x
: Anisotropic filtering 8xtexture_filter=aniso16x
: Anisotropic filtering 16x
Characters¶
Adjust characters
characters=very_low
: Disables facial animations, no eyes or teethcharacters=low
: Disables facial animations, enables eyes, disables teeth, disables eye movement and blinkingcharacters=medium
: Enables facial animations, enables eyes and teeth, disables eye movement and blinking, disables enhanced lip synccharacters=medium_high
: Enables facial animations, enables eyes and teeth, enables eye movement and blinking, enables enhanced lip sync at short rangecharacters=high
: Enables smooth facial animations, enables eyes and teeth, enables eye movement and blinking, enables enhanced lip sync at a slightly increased rangecharacters=ultra
: Enables smooth facial animations, high quality models, enables eyes and teeth, enables eye movement and blinking, enables enhanced lip sync at all ranges
General decals¶
Controls bullet holes and overall decal support
decals=off
: Disables decalsdecals=low
: 9 max decals that hide at a medium range that can’t overlap very muchdecals=medium
96 max decals that hide at a medium range that can’t overlap very muchdecals=high
: 96 max decals that hide at a far away range that can overlap much moredecals=ultra
: 2048 max decals (engine limit) that do not hide and can overlap with practically no limit
Note that in the Very Low preset, decals are forced invisible.
Model decals¶
Controls blood on hurt players and some bullet decals on props
decals_models=off
: Disable model decalsdecals_models=low
: Allow up to 9 model decalsdecals_models=high
: Allow up to 32 model decals
Map decals¶
Controls decals placed by the map author
decals_art=off
: Disables map decalsdecals_art=on
: Enables map decals
Spray decals¶
Controls decals sprayed by players
sprays=off
: Completely disables downloading, uploading and displaying sprayssprays=on
: Allows sprays
Gibs¶
gibs=off
: Disables gibsgibs=low
: Max of 2 gib partsgibs=medium
: Default number of gibsgibs=high
: Default number of gibs, gibs can burn
Low violence¶
lowviolence=off
: Normal gibs and bloodlowviolence=on
: Turns on low violence mode. In TF2, this means birthday style gibs and blood.
Props¶
Controls the rendering of various small objects
props=low
: Disables client side props like bottles, disables foliage, low quality prop models and invisible railingsprops=medium
: Disables client side props, disables foliage, default quality prop modelsprops=high
: Enables ambient lighting and decals on static props, enables a small number of client side props, enables foliage at a reasonable distance with instant pop in, default quality prop modelsprops=ultra
Enables ambient lighting and decals on static props, enables a high number of client side props, enables foliage at a very high distance with fade in, max quality prop models regardless of distance
Keep in mind that you must add your preferred cl_detaildist
and cl_detailfade
settings to your class configs if they are different from your preset, or else they will be overridden.
Ragdolls¶
Control physics simulation and fading for bodies that spawn on death
ragdolls=off
: Disables ragdollsragdolls=medium
: Enables standard ragdollsragdolls=high
: Enables ragdolls with collisions with a high fade out time
3D sky¶
Controls the enhanced 3D skybox enabled in most maps
3dsky=off
: Disables 3D sky3dsky=on
: Enables 3D sky
Jigglebones¶
Controls cloth and joint physics on some items like the fish and skull bat
jigglebones=off
: Always disable jigglebonesjigglebones=on
: Disable jigglebones only if the framerate is below 67FPSjigglebones=force_on
: Never disable jigglebones
Killstreak Sheens Speed¶
How fast the animation is on the killstreak sheen glow for weapons.
sheens_speed=slow
: Slow speed.sheens_speed=medium
: The standard speed.sheens_speed=fast
: Faster speed.
Killstreak Sheens Tint Intensity¶
How intense the color tint is on the killstreak sheen glow for weapons.
sheens_tint=low
: Base tint.sheens_tint=medium
: Small tint boost.sheens_tint=high
: High tint boost.sheens_tint=full
: Maximum tint boost.
Texture quality¶
Controls texture quality
textures=very_low
: Low texture quality, blocky texturestextures=low
: Low texture qualitytextures=medium
: Medium texture qualitytextures=high
: High texture qualitytextures=very_high
: Very high texture quality
Texture blending¶
Controls if textures blend together
texture_blending=off
: Disables texture blendingtexture_blending=on
: Enables texture blending
Bumpmaps¶
Controls bumpmapping on textures
bumpmap=off
: Disables bumpmappingbumpmap=on
: Enables bumpmapping
Specular¶
Control specular on textures
specular=off
: Disables specularspecular=on
: Enables specular
Ropes¶
Controls ropes for Mannpower grappling hook and decorations in maps
ropes=off
: Disables ropesropes=low
: Basic ropesropes=high
: Ropes with smoothing and basic subdivisionsropes=ultra
: Ropes with max smoothing, increased subdivisions, collision checks and wind simulation
HUD modules¶
Player model¶
Toggle the live 3D player model in the corner of your screen
hud_player_model=off
: Disables the player modelhud_player_model=on
: Enables the player model
Panels¶
Toggle health/player info panels.
hud_panels=off
: Disables health/player info panels on hover.hud_panels=on
: Enables health/player info panels on hover.
Messages¶
messages=disable
: Disables all text messagesmessages=userchat
: Only displays user generated messagesmessages=enable
: Enables all text messages
Killfeed¶
killfeed=off
: Disables killfeedkillfeed=on
: Enables killfeed
Killstreaks¶
killstreaks=off
: Disable killstreak bannerkillstreaks=low
: Enables killstreak solid bannerkillstreaks=high
: Enables killstreak translucent banner
Outlines¶
outlines=off
: Disable outlines and nametagsoutlines=low
: Enable nametags, disable outlinesoutlines=high
: Enable nametags and outlines
Map Background¶
dynamic_background=off
: No main menu map background on startupdynamic_background=preload
:preload_room
map background for yttrium preloading (auto disconnects)dynamic_background=itemtest
:itemtest
map background for preloading (auto disconnects)dynamic_background=dustbowl
: Live Dustbowl map main menu background on startup
Sound modules¶
sound=low
: Disable sound volume mixing, very low quality sound spatialization and positional effects, delays spatializationsound=medium
: Enables sound volume mixing, only basic sound spatialization and positional effects enabled, slightly delays spatializationsound=high
: Enables sound volume mixing, enables all sound spatialization and positional effects, slightly delays spatializationsound=very_high
Enables sound volume mixing, enables all sound spatialization and positional effects, enables pitch smoothingsound=ultra
: Enables sound volume mixing, enables enhanced sound spatialization and positional effects, immediately spatializes and traces sounds, enables pitch smoothing
Note that in the Low and Very Low presets, spatialization and positional effects (called DSP in the Source Engine) are completely disabled.